Adobe® Photoshop® Lightroom® 2 for Digital Photographers Only

Chapter 4. ORGANIZING IMAGES IN THE LIBRARY MODULE

Lightroom's Library module has some easy-to-use features that are quite powerful as you saw in the last chapter. I find that they are definitely speeding up the way I work with my photos. I used to dread putting caption information on all the photos of a shoot, yet some of my projects and clients required that. Now, I can do it in a hurry and it isn't painful, either! I like the way Lightroom's Library helps me organize my images, but using those features in your workflow requires a bit of thought and work on your part. You need to decide how best to deal with organizing images. Lightroom provides a place; it's up to you to determine how to use that place.

One major issue among photographers today is what the best way is to file and organize digital images. There is a multitude of experts promoting their way to work as the best approach. In a sense, they are all right. When it comes to handling image files, different photographers respond differently to what is best for them, so there will be multiple "bests."

So, as a photographer, how do you know which approach is best for you? How can you use Lightroom optimally for your purposes? In this chapter, I offer some ideas on doing just that.

Managing Physical Image Files in the Past

It is important to first look at how you filed photos in the past because that can help you better work out ...